Posted on 04/23/2011 8:28:21 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Except for the crowds and the gowns and the jewelry - on a certain level royal weddings over the years have been like many others. But royal weddings are different in one special way, as CBS News correspondent Mark Phillips reports: They all claim to be good business, so we're told.
Jacqueline French, of London and Partners Tourism Promoters, says, "There's a here's a huge opportunity in London that comes from hosting such an event as the royal wedding. In fact if we have the same number of visitors who came to the wedding of Charles and Diana in 1981, which was around 600,000 people, we could have an economic benefit to the capital of around 30 to 50 million pounds."
That's about $80 million spent by all the people who come to eat, sleep and make merry in one of the world's most expensive cities. Some tourists say they're spending $1,000 a day in London. That's before buying all the mugs, plates, dish towels, bags, cushions, stamps, pillows, playing cards, champagne glasses and biscuits - which can be sent anywhere in the world.
(Beware of those mugs made in China which suffer from brotherly confusion. The mugs mistakenly have Prince Harry, not William next to Kate.)
But all the pomp is expensive. The royals, known as "the firm" because they are a business, receive a government grant of about $13 million a year to cover expenses. But the public cost of the wedding far exceeds that.
Extra policing and overtime alone is estimated at more than $35 million. Here's a further cost - when all the people are celebrating, they're not working. And because the wedding holiday falls between two long holiday weekends in England, you can take 11 days off by burning only three days of vacation time.
(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...
We can fire czars every four years. You’re stuck with royalty for life.
What bogus arguements! The $35 million going to the police is in extra salary. This salary will be taxed by the government, and spent by the cops.
The people who are "burning off" three vacation days would be burning them off some other time of year. This is vacation time they earned! There is no "loss" to the economy. These people who are off for 11 days will be spending money they might not otherwise be spending if they were sitting behind their desks.
Princes, exPresidents, whatever
Maybe so, but in the meantime , I’ll bet that the czars do more damage than the princes.
A hilarious comedy sketch (don’t ask me where I saw it) had some show biz guys discussing a new song they just got ( the potato potato song ). There was no indication on the music about the pronunciation thing go they were reading the words exactly as written
You say potato I say potato
You say tomato I say tomato.
They get more and more confused. They concluded that it was the stupidest song they ever heard and threw it in the waste basket.
Hopefully Obama will soon join loser Carter and impeached Bill Clinton in the “Worst Former President” contest.
“the czars” (strawmen)
Yeah, you’re right—they’re both a waste of money.
Meanwhile back at the Buckingham ranch, Prince Roy and Queen Dale hold their breath over another hand gettin’ hitched.
The smartest thing the Brits can do is ditch the royals and use Miss England and the Page 3 girls who usually pose topless for things like opening Parliament, officiating at Burger King openings, etc.
It would save a lot of money and they’d look better doing it.
$50 Billion? That’s chump change! We have a community agitator residing in D.C. whose four-year paid vacation for he and his kinfolks will total approximately 5 TRILLION!
I can care less. Our founding fathers had the right idea since 1776..
In other words, the communist media is upset because Obama wasn’t invited.
I don’t see the communist media complaining when Obama and the First Wookie spend our money lavishly on their vacations.
KATE ENGAGEMENT DAY DOLL
DIANA WEDDING DAY DOLL
Diana's flower girl doll.
GALLERY http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/images/products/portraits_gallery.jpg
The Royal Collection has announced the launch of the first official ‘Royal App’ about royal weddings of the past, in the run-up to the forthcoming marriage of HRH Prince William of Wales and Miss Catherine Middleton. The Royal Weddings app tells the story of seven royal weddings, from Queen Victoria and Prince Albert in 1840, to TRH The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall in 2005.
Royal Collection Apps are the latest way that the Royal Household is engaging with new media and follows the successful launch of the British Monarchy’s presence on Facebook and Flickr last year, of the Royal Twitter account in 2009 and the Royal Channel on YouTube in 2007. The Royal Weddings app, which will be available in eight languages, is the first in a series of Royal Collection Apps to be launched this year. Over the last two centuries, royal weddings have evolved from strictly private occasions to international celebrations. With the advent of photography, film, television and now new technology, ever-increasing numbers can witness and participate in these events.
The Royal Weddings app reveals the tradition, splendour and romance of the seven royal weddings and includes images of wedding dresses and jewellery, gifts exchanged between bride and groom, presents from family and friends, wedding cakes and flowers. The Royal Weddings App will be available for Apple and Android from 18 April 2011 and is priced at £1.79.
SOURCE http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/default.asp?action=article&ID=931
And they calculate that if every Briton does this, it will cost 50 billion in productivity.
As if every Briton will take vacation simultaneously.
And as if no one would have used all their available vacation days anyway at some other time of year.
On 19 April, in the cathedral of Saint Nicholas, the royal groom wore a wedding outfit that he had designed himself, based on the uniform of Napoleon’s marshals.
His bride was more than a match for his princely plumage, thanks to her natural beauty and her magnificent wedding dress. The bodice was made of antique lace, and a high cummerbund of ivory silk faille encircled the bride’s slim waist, now measuring less than 21 inches due to the strain of the wedding preparations during the preceding few months.
The full silk skirt was bell-shaped and the silk tulle veil had two lace lovebirds appliquéd at the back. According to MGM, the cathedral bridal ensemble had taken six weeks to create and involved the skills of 35 craftspeople, working under strict conditions to preserve the secrecy of the design. Helen Rose designed both the cathedral and the civil-ceremony wedding dresses — Prince Rainier designed his own outfit.
As was the Monaguesqe custom, the civil marriage of Grace and Prince Rainier took place in the Monaco palace throne room on 18 April 1956. The bride was beautiful in a beige lace and dusty rose silk suit with a fitted bodice and skirt that flared into a full hem. A close-fitting hat trimmed with silk flowers, pink silk pumps and white gloves added the final touches.
The studio also gave its star a dozen Helen Rose-designed outfits from High Society – the musical comedy that was to be the actress’s 11th and final film. She expanded her trousseau to some 40 outfits during a rapid shopping trip to New York. The colour palette included beige, delicate pastels and her favourite hue, yellow.
Grace in a Maggy Rouff gown
I think she is a doll and comports herself quite well.
Good for both of them.
Rule Britannia!
FRONT HEADPIECE
SIDE VIEW
Pity that whiter than white Grace was in fact as pure as the driven slush...
Wotta Puritan.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.